USS Blandy (DD-943)

The USS Blandy (DD-943) was a Forrest Sherman-class destroyer built at the Bethlehem Steel Corporation's Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts. She launched 19 December 1956 and was commissioned on 26 November 1957.

In late January 1958, Blandy proceeded to Guantanamo Bay for shakedown trails and crew training. Once this was completed, Blandy headed for a tour of Northern Europe, Morocco and the Mediterranean Sea.

Her next deployment to Europe came in May 1959 during anti-submarine warfare (ASW) exercises off the coast of Georgia. Blandy was ordered to proceed to a position in the North Atlantic due to a "Berlin Crisis." After completion of this assignment, Blandy visited Argentina and Newfoundland.

In 1960, Blandy operated with Task Group Bravo until deployed in June to the Mediterranean. She remained with that group until returning to the Boston yard for overhaul. After eight weeks of extensive training, Blandy reported for duty in Key West with the Fleet Sonar School.

Later that year, she spent six weeks at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for work on her engineering plant.

In 1962, Blandy participated in Operation Springboard out of San Juan for a month. On the way back to Newport, she was assigned to the recovery group for Project Mercury. Later that year, she was among the destroyers that maintained the blockade of Cuba during the missile crisis.

During 1963 and 1964, Blandy deployed to the Mediterranean, transiting the Suez Canal and operating as a unit of the Middle East Forces in the Red Sea. She conducted ASW exercises in the winter and spring of 1964 and participated in the Navy's annual Operation Springboard exercise in the Caribbean. Alternate deployments to the Caribbean and Mediterranean continued over the next two years.

Blandy returned to Norfolk in March 1966 and entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for extensive modifications and repairs to her boilers after a malfunction that killed two crewmen. Following the repairs, the crew underwent refresher training in the Caribbean, followed by another assignment with the 6th Fleet in early 1967.

Vietnam and Upgrades

In early 1968, in preparation for deployment off Vietnam, Blandy's crew underwent intensive training in the Caribbean. On 26 March, Blandy began her seven-month deployment to Vietnam. In addition to gunfire support, she also participated in Operation Sea Dragon, sinking 22 waterborne logistics craft and damaging 25 others.

Blandy arrived back in Norfolk, Virginia on 5 November 1968. On 15 January 1969, Blandy entered the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for an ASW modernization. The work was completed on 17 September 1970, and her crew then underwent two months of refresher training out of Guantanamo Bay.

She entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard on 6 February 1971 to undergo a Navy Distillate Fuel conversion. Upon completion of the conversion, her crew prepared for another Mediterranean deployment.

After several months of operations in the Caribbean, Blandy returned to Vietnam on 17 October, operating along the entire coast at one point or another. She was relieved of combat duty on 28 January 1973, when Blandy fired her 10,000th combat round. Later that night, she completed her last mission in Vietnam.

Blandy returned to Norfolk from the western Pacific in April 1973 for inspections and evaluations.

Fire

On 15 November 1974, Blandy again departed to the Mediterranean. Highlights of this tour included a visit by the Commander of the 6th Fleet and a NATO exercise with Italian forces. She returned to the U.S. on 15 May 1975 and conducted local operations and awaited a much-needed major yard period at the Boston Yard on 15 October 1975. Toward the end of this yard period in late April 1976, a fire broke out in a medical storeroom, causing half a million dollars in damage and delaying her return to service. Fortunately the vessel was ready in time for the U.S. Bicentennial that year.

Blandy continued her deployments to the Mediterranean throughout the next two years. In 1978, she was deployed to the Persian Gulf as the Iranian Revolution got underway, in order to evacuate U.S. citizens if necessary.

On 8 May 1979, Blandy was relieved of duty and she arrived home in Norfolk on 30 May.

Final Years

In January 1980 the vessel entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for work that lasted a year. By 31 December 1980, the majority of the overhaul was completed and the ship was ready for her return to active duty. With the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Blandy was deployed to the Indian Ocean along with several other warships.

The USS Blandy was decommissioned on 5 November 1982 and struck from the Navy List on 27 July 1990. She was initially sold for scrap to the Fore River Shipyard and Iron Works on 11 December 1992. When that company went bankrupt in 1993, her hulk was resold to N. R. Acquisition Inc. of New York City by the Bankruptcy Court. She was eventually re-sold to Wilmington Resources in North Carolina and scrapped in 1996.

Asbestos Risks

For as long as there have been wars, those who serve their country understand that certain dangers and risks accompany their daily duties. What many did not understand during much of the 1900s, however, was a risk unrelated to bullets or attacks by the enemy was present aboard many ships and vessels.

The substance known as asbestos was widely utilized on ships and vessels constructed for the U.S. Navy. The mineral's natural resistance to heat and fire made it ideal for use as insulation and fireproofing aboard destroyers like the USS Blandy. A vessel's engine room and mechanical spaces were often the sections where those aboard vessels were most likely to be exposed to asbestos though practically all parts of a ship like the USS Blandy presented a real danger of asbestos exposure. Further risk of high levels of asbestos exposure occurred when a destroyer incurred damage, in conflict or through daily operations, as this may have caused asbestos fibers to break off and enter the air where they could be inhaled or ingested by anyone nearby.

Those who served aboard the USS Blandy or worked during the construction or repair stages may have been exposed to asbestos. Exposure to asbestos may result in the development of serious asbestos-related illnesses such as asbestosis or mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer. When asbestos fibers enter the body they can become lodged in body cavities or organs, causing inflammation or infection. Overtime, this can cause mesothelioma to develop. Patients with mesothelioma may not demonstrate symptoms of the cancer for 20 to 50 years after initial exposure to asbestos occurred. If you worked on the USS Blandy, served aboard the vessel or have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and wish to learn more about treatment and legal options available to those with the cancer, please click here and Asbestos.com will send you a complimentary comprehensive packet.

Source

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